Author's Notes:
Ahoi… waves tiredly After finishing my Norse mythology essay, I felt obliged to finish this chapter. It's only 8 PM in Switzerland but I feel like sleeping. Lol
Anyway, you still get a new, short and Rabi filled chapter. I hope you can enjoy. There is a flashback scene in here which is indicated by italics.
Disclaimer: D.Gray-Man belongs to Katsura Hoshino
Kapitel 19 The Pirate Exorcist
Ellen was slowly waking from a deep sleep. She could hear faint voices and slowly opened her eyes. She saw the blurry image of a man standing over her.
"Rabi! Watch out that nobody comes inside", he said and Ellen continued looking at him without really perceiving much.
"Sure!", another, younger voice answered. Where has she heard that voice before…?
"Oh? Well? Are you awake?", Ellen blinked a few times until her vision cleared up and she could see Komui standing next to her bed.
"Mister Li?", she asked and looked around. She was in an unfamiliar room, lying in a bed. She couldn't see that well and her body ached, but it was bearable. "Where are we?", she asked and realized that she didn't see anything with her left eyes. At once she remembered the last mission, their encounter with the Noah Rhode Camelot and the disastrous failure to save the Akuma's soul. Ellen squeezed her eyes shut as a wave of nausea washed over her just by remembering what has happened.
"Ellen? Ellen, are you alright?", Komui asked and put his hand on Ellen's shoulder, squeezing lightly. The young girl reopened her eyes and nodded. Komui smiled and sat back on his chair next to the bed. "Good. We are in the hospital. We have received a message from the finders, telling us that the town returned to normal. Good work, Ellen!". The aristocratic girl sat up in bed, looking at the man in front of her.
"The city…", she said and Komui smiled.
"Miss Miranda was here to see you as well, you just missed her".
"Oh… But why are you even here in Germany, Mister Li?", she asked to which Komui grinned.
"Why, to repair you of course!", he exclaimed and Ellen frowned.
"Re… Repair?", she repeated, backing off slightly. Komui laughed, but his smile was a bit sad and strained and Ellen wondered what might be troubling him.
"I can't let you go back to the order just yet… There is another long-time mission waiting for you. As soon as Linali wakes up I'll give you more information", he said and Ellen widened her eyes.
"Linali is not awake yet?! Is she okay?", the girl asked, worriedly.
"It's because of that Akuma attack, damaging some of her nerves", Komui said and Ellen's face fell.
"No problem", a voice called, "Gramps takes care of her! She'll be alive and kicking again very soon". Ellen turned her head and widened her eyes at once; leant against the doorframe was a young man. He wore an exorcist's uniform and had unruly red-hair and an eye-patch. Ellen's breath stopped in her throat and she blushed.
"Oooh. Ellen?", Komui asked, nudging her with a grin, but the girl just stared at the "Exorcist Pirate".
"I'm Rabi. Nice to meet you", he greeted her and Ellen snapped out of it.
"It is my pleasure to finally meet you", she said, remembering her manners. Rabi smiled at her in amusement.
"I remember seeing you before! You're that guy who was in the Akuma infested town, close to the order, right?", he asked and Ellen nodded. Rabi walked to the bed and rested his hands on the metal frame. "Girl, actually, right?". Ellen nodded and put her hand to her chest, holding the only half-buttoned pyjama top together. Rabi laughed and studied her, which made Ellen a little bit uneasy.
"Well. I'm going to check on Linali and I've still got work to do!", Komui said and left his chair. He opened the door and when he went out another person came in. It was the old man Ellen had seen with Rabi more than three months ago.
"Go fetch her clothes and help her dress", he ordered and Rabi nodded, disappearing from the room. The old man looked at Ellen, studying her face. "Let me have a look at your eye", he told her and she nodded. She gently threw back the covers and slipped out of the bed. The red-head came back with a suitcase, grinning. Ellen unbuttoned her shirt not really feeling ashamed when Rabi helped her dress; he was just helping her after all.
"Thank you", Ellen said and sat back on the bed so hat the old man could take off the bandages on her head. Ellen's left eye was destroyed, but it was clearly visible that it was healing.
"Hmm… Remarkable! The left eye which had been crushed, is starting to regenerate", he said while Ellen tied her hair into a ponytail. "You will be blind for a while, but this will come to pass", the old man said, putting back his needles, "if the healing process continues like that you should be completely recovered in three to four days… My needles are not needed here". He put his utensils away and looked at the girl. "This has to be a "curse", am I correct?". He put a simple patch over Ellen's eye and she lowered her head, covering her left eye with her hand.
"This wound… I received it about 4 months ago, when I turned my uncle into an Akuma…", she confessed, but the old man didn't seem to be surprised, neither did Rabi say anything about it.
"Ellen Walker. The girl that has received the prophecy of being the Destroyer of Time…", the old man said and Ellen looked at him. "We are the Bookmen. We had our own reasons to join the ranks of the exorcists", he said and extended his hand to Ellen, "The boy is called Rabi. I have no name". Ellen shook his hand and he continued: "Just call me Bookman". Ellen nodded and the Bookman stepped away.
"If you allow me to… I would like to visit Linali…", Ellen said and the Bookman nodded.
"Go ahead", he replied and Ellen smiled timidly, then she got up and pulled on her boots. She made a bow to Rabi, who just grinned and observed her leave the room.
"So that's her… Impressive", he muttered, while grinning to himself.
Ellen was still feeling a little bit dizzy and clumsy on her feet, but she found her way to Linali's room.
"If I had not been feeling so awkward back then, maybe Linali would not have been hurt as much…", she thought, touching her chest, as her heart sped up again, just from walking these few meters. "Is it all because of my Innocence? I thought that I had mastered it…", she mumbled, still waiting for a reply. As none came, she put her hand on the door knob and turned.
"Excuse me, Mister Li. I am entering", she announced her entry and opened the door. What she saw was Linali lying in the bed and all around mountains of paperwork and Komui somewhere in between, asleep. Ellen frowned, but first walked up to Linali, bending down to look at her. She didn't seem injured and Ellen let out a sigh of relief, brushing Linali's hair out of her face.
"I am sorry…", she whispered remorsefully, but then she straightened back up and walked around the bed, where Komui sat. "Mister Li?", Ellen asked and put her hand on his shoulder, "Mister Li, please wake up". The man mumbled and Ellen was getting impatient, shaking him not too gently. "Mister Li! Wake up at once!", she commanded and Komui finally opened his eyes, springing to his feet in alarm. "Good morning", Ellen said with a bright smile, when Komui turned around with a confused expression.
"Oh! It's you, Ellen? What's the matter?", he asked and sat back down on the floor.
"I wanted to visit Linali and see how she is doing… She is still unconscious, is she not?". Komui laughed and started sorting through his papers, while Ellen sat down on a bench.
"Oh don't worry! She probably is dreaming something nice. We really don't have to trouble ourselves. Bookman took good care of her", he said and turned to look at Ellen and her bandaged arm. "How is your left hand?", he asked.
"Good actually", Ellen replied and Komui smiled.
"That's nice to hear. Bookman is a true master in the art of acupuncture. A learnt girl like you probably knows what that is", he said and Ellen nodded with a small smile. They were silent for a while, Komui still sorting through his paper mess.
"Mister Li…", she started after a while, "You always have a lot of work to do… Why have you come here? Surely not just because of Linali and me…". Komui stopped what he was doing and turned his head to Ellen, smiling slightly. "What… What is the Noah clan?", she asked with a troubled expression.
"What is the Noah clan?", the same question was repeated and Ellen and Komui looked to the other side of the room where Rabi sat in between stacks of papers, grinning. "Actually, to ask gramps, the bookman, exactly this question".
"My… When did he come in?", Ellen wondered and a look in Komui's face told her that he was asking himself the same thing. Rabi smiled at them and continued talking:
"The Noah clan doesn't leave any traces and in history, they are only talked about in secret. They mostly appear at turning points of history. However, no historical tradition reports about them. Now, these enigmatic people have appeared on the Earl's side. Exactly because of that, Komui came here", he said, still smiling and lifted his left hand, index finger raised. "The only ones in the world who write down the hidden history are the Bookm-", before Rabi could finish he was hit by a kick to his face, which sent him crashing into the piles of papers and books. Bookman landed on a carton, glaring at the red-head.
"How many times do I need to repeat it?", he said, "The information of the Bookmen may only be passed on by a Bookman!".
"Dear goodness!", Ellen though, pretty much surprised by the sudden appearance of the old man.
"What's your problem? I will soon take over from you!", Rabi shouted, remerging from the pile of papers.
"Imbecile! As immature as you are, I will certainly not transfer this duty to you!", Bookman hissed, staring down at the younger one.
"You old panda gramps!", Rabi replied, grinning but still angry at being hit. Bookman ignored him and turned his head to look at Ellen.
"Ellen Walker!", he called and she jumped up on her feet, because he startled her.
"Y… Yes, Sir?!", she replied.
"You should rest now!", Bookman said, observing her closely, "Work will only continue when Miss Linali comes to. As you see, there is no need to hurry". With this Rabi and Ellen where ushered out of the room by Bookman and Komui, the door slamming shut behind them. They both looked at each other and Rabi started grinning.
"Well… Too bad", he said and Ellen nodded, lowering her head, "hey! Why don't you grab your coat and we go outside! It was snowing", he suggested and Ellen looked at him, smiling slightly.
"This seems like a good idea, I need some fresh air to clear my mind", she replied and Rabi grinned.
"I'll be waiting here!", he said and watched Ellen walk back to her room to fetch her coat. It didn't take her long to put it on and she walked back to Rabi. "Okay! Let's get outside!". Ellen followed Rabi down the stairs and out of the hospital to the gardens. It was still snowing and the floor was covered by ankle-deep snow. There already were some small snow men and Rabi instantly went there, gathering snow.
"Have you built those, Mister Rabi?", Ellen wondered and Rabi laughed.
"Yes. I was pretty bored while you were still sleeping...". Ellen managed a timid smile and started helping with the snow men, Timcampy flying around her head. "How old are you?", Rabi wondered.
"I am 15", Ellen replied, forming the snow into a ball.
"Younger than I am. I'm 18", Rabi told her, "15 is it then… I actually thought you were older. Surely because of your white hair…". Ellen lowered her head.
"This might be… I still need to get used to this hair… It has been brown not too long ago, Mister Rabi…", he said and Rabi smiled at her understandingly, as if he knew what she was talking about. It gave Ellen a warm feeling to see his smile.
"Oh, you can call me Rabi. There are also some people who call me Junior…", he said and Ellen looked down at him and his amused grin, "may I call you beansprout, Ellen?", he asked and Ellen let the ball of snow she had been forming in her hands drop.
"Excuse me?!", she demanded, flustered and a bit irritated.
"But that's what Yu calls you, or not?", Rabi asked with a wide grin and Ellen frowned in confusion.
"Yu?"
"I'm talking about Kanda! You certainly know his first name, don't you?", he asked with a sly grin and Ellen's blush deepened.
"I… I do know, but I use to call him Kanda", she mumbled and Rabi had to laugh.
"Don't be so shy!", he said and Ellen put on an indignant pout, but then she sighed.
"You were on a mission with him, were you not?", she asked and Rabi nodded, "how is he doing?"
"Fine! Kanda's always fine, he's tough, you know?", Rabi answered and Ellen breathed out a sigh of relief, "he continued right to his next mission and is now on his way to Spain".
"What a pity. He should rest once in a while…", she said and Rabi chuckled, "what is it?".
"Oh, it's just that I had imagined you to be… different!", he replied and Ellen raised her eyebrow in confusion.
"How come?"
"Because Yu described you… well…", he said, barely able to contain his laughter. But what he said made Ellen widen her eyes.
"Kanda spoke of me?"
"Once I got him started he wouldn't shut up again! It was hilarious to see him in such a mood!"
"You are teasing me!", Ellen wailed and dropped down on the snow covered ground next to Rabi.
"No! Of course not! I'll tell you what happened", Rabi started and grinned at her, "I love telling stories after all, especially about Kanda".
-
Kanda and Rabi were sitting in a small room of their inn just after they completed the mission. They had just finished writing the report and Rabi was lying on the bed, relaxing, while Kanda sat at the small table.
"Oi. Hand me a piece of paper!", Kanda said and Rabi sat up with a confused expression.
"Huh? Why do you –"
"Shut up and hand it over", the black haired exorcist interrupted him and glared at his friend. Rabi laughed, but got up and took a piece of paper out of his back and handed it to Kanda. He took it wordlessly and Rabi observed how he slipped his bracelet off his wrist and put it in an envelope. It confused him, especially as Kanda started to write a small note he then folded.
"What are you doing? Did you destroy anything which you now need to pay with your precious bracelet?", Rabi asked with a frown, which earned him an intense glare.
"Of course not, you idiot!", Kanda hissed and Rabi used his momentary annoyance to snatch the note out of his hands. "Hey!!"
"Beansprout. This mission will take me longer than expected; at least another month and I've already got word that I might have to join another mission afterwards. I've included my wristband. It's important to me, take care of it – if it breaks I'll hit you. I might not be able to write another letter for a long time and don't know if you'll even be at the order. But that's the way it is. Take care, Kanda", he read out loud and by the time he raised his head with a clearly confused expression Kanda was already flustered – partly from being angry at Rabi and partly because he was embarrassed.
"Woah… Who's this beansprout? The guy you've been on a mission with? My sixth sense tells me there is some strange tension between you and this beansprout"
"Beansprout is not… a guy. She's a girl!", Kanda shouted and snatched back the letter from the surprised Rabi. He stuffed the note inside of the envelope and closed it.
"A girl? You give your bracelet to a girl?! Are you in love with her?", Rabi asked laughing, that's why he nearly fell from the bed when he heard Kanda's answer:
"Of course I am", he replied as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. Rabi didn't even know what to think anymore.
"O… O… Of course?! I ask you if you were in love with this beansprout and you answer of course?!"
"Tch. That's my answer. If it doesn't suit you then shut up and ignore it", he spat and Rabi started roaring with laughter.
"I can't possibly ignore it if you are in love! With a human!", he managed to say and Kanda could swear that the whole inn heard it – including their finders.
"One day, I'm going to castrate you for being such an idiot", he threatened, but Rabi was too amused to notice it.
"Tell me all about her! Who is she? What is she like? Does she know?", he asked and Kanda groaned, but somehow Rabi knew that Kanda was as eager to speak of her as he was to hear – which was really strange in its own way, but Rabi ignored it.
"Well… Her name is Ellen Walker. She is of noble birth… She is small and frail looking, like a doll…", Kanda said, his cheeks slightly red, "she is well-mannered and… very beautiful… I can't even describe her… When she moves then it's full of grace, her eyes always sparkle and her lips when she smiles are well-formed and nicely coloured. And her hair… It's the most beautiful hair I've ever seen… It has the same colour as moonlight and it's silky to touch… And her body is perfect…"
"Yu… You are deeply in love with her…", Rabi commented, in awe to hear his friend talk like this.
"Wasn't that obvious from the start, you dumbass?!", Kanda shouted and Rabi chuckled.
"Fine, fine! Tell me more!".
"Tch!", Kanda snorted, but he was more than willing to talk about Ellen, it somehow renewed his love for her over and over again, "She is also a bit foolish sometimes. She doesn't think that much before she acts, because she always lets her emotion overrun her. That's really her worst trait"
"Her body?", Rabi asked and saw Kanda lower his head, snorting and mumbling something, "what was that?"
"It's perfect I said! From her soft skin to her breasts!", he answered and Rabi widened his visible eye.
"Her breasts? I'm no longer talking to a virgin then?!"
"If you tell me now that you ever thought of me in these terms then I'm going to maim you", Kanda hissed and Rabi had to laugh.
"It's okay! It's okay!", he said and Kanda seemed to calm down at that, "so she really means a lot to you" and Kanda nodded.
"You will join up with her… I hate to ask anything of you, but protect her", he said and looked at the envelope in his hands. Rabi looked at him with a smile and nodded.
"I will"
-
"He… He talked about my breasts?!", Ellen shrieked, blushing furiously and Rabi laughed.
"Is that all you have to say? Ellen, you're really funny!"
"Do not mock me, Rabi", Ellen said, sighing deeply, "he should not have talked so openly about intimate matters"
"I'm his best friend, Ellen. But rest assured that he didn't let any details slip! It seems that you're too divine to touch. Like your hair. He always told me how much he loved your hair! That was really funny", the Bookman apprentice said and Ellen lowered her head, "what are your feeling for him? You do return his love, don't you?"
"I… I guess I do… But I think I should not", the girl confessed, drawing patters into the snow, which made Rabi raise an eyebrow.
"Home come? Ah, wait, say nothing. It's because you're from a noble family… How tragic"
"You are mocking me again, Rabi…", she said and Rabi patted her head.
"Come on, don't look so down! Someone, who I never expected to fall in love, deeply loves you. There is no need to be so sullen!", he said and Ellen looked up at him.
"But it… I do not know what to do…", she said and Rabi was confused to see her so troubled.
"Maybe you should concentrate on your life as en exorcist now. I'd say that it might take you a long time to meet Yu again. Maybe you have your thoughts sorted out by then", he told her and Ellen looked at him quizzically.
"What do you mean by that?", she wondered and Rabi turned away from her, focussing his attention on the snowman he was building.
"Our next mission might take quite a while and lead to a huge battle. The Earl started moving… The appearance of the Noah clan proved that". Ellen widened her eyes because she was instantly reminded of Rhode and the uneasy feeling connected with her. She wordlessly rose from the ground, wiping the snow off her clothes. "We should not let ourselves be distracted by anything, maybe it's best if you just ignore your insecurities for the moment". He looked up at Ellen and saw her clench her left hand, holing it with her right.
"I have become an exorcist to destroy Akuma, not to kill humans!", she said, pressing her lips together, then she let her hands fall back to her sides and turned around, "Excuse me". Rabi watched her walk off, slightly surprised.
"Hey? What's wrong?", he asked, but she didn't reply, "beansprout!"
"My name is Ellen!", she shouted furiously, turning around, before childishly walking off. "I will take a small walk! You can return". Rabi scratched his head.
"What a child… You really got yourself an interesting girl, Yu…"
To be continued
Notes:
We finally reached Volume 4. Next chapter will be the rest of the time they spend in Germany and then we're off to the Romania mini arc! :D
Well… The flashback scene was a bit strange, but I hope that you will forgive me for that. Lol